The One Thing That Would Change His Life Forever
by onlyonceinforever
Summary: Oliver has a tough decision to make after a devestating injury. Will he choose the sport that he loves or the woman he loves more? OWxOC :ONESHOT:


**Disclaimer: God, if I owned Oliver and the other Harry Potter characters, I certainly would be too busy with other things to be writing fanfics. Kylie, however, different story. **

**The One Thing That Could Change His Life Forever**

Oliver Wood sat high in the air, perched precociously upon his broomstick, staring hard into the area stretched out before him. It was raining, and visibility was close to none. That wasn't much of a problem for the Puddlemere United Quidditch team, however, as more often than not their training sessions took place in the pouring rain.

It was the most important game of the season, probably of Oliver's entire Keeping career. This game would determine who the European Cup would go to - Puddlemere or their sworn enemies, the Wimbourne Wasps. If they lost this match, the team would never be able to live it down.

The score was 90 to 250, in Wimbourne's favor. If either team caught the Snitch now, it would all be over. Not only would Puddlemere lost horribly if their opponent's gained possession, but it wouldn't matter if Puddlemere got to it first, as the 150 bonus would still only bring them to 240 points, ten shy of a tie. Oliver gritted his teeth in frustration. He was not having a good day. Not only had he let the Wasps score considerably more times than he would have liked, but if they didn't score and catch the Snitch soon, every player on the team would have to face a crushing disappointment.

A cheer went up from the crowd as one of Puddlemere's Chasers, Joscelind Wadcock, threw the Quaffle past the Wasp's Keeper, bringing the score to 100 to 250. If we could score once more, Oliver thought to himself, and catch the Snitch before they have the opportunity to get past me again, then we might just be able to win this thing.

Oliver's thoughts became a reality as another cheer went up from the Puddlemere fans. Oliver smiled that smile that thousands of screaming fangirls all over the world would kill to see in person. Then numerous things happened in rapid succession.

First, Semar Karna, Puddlemere's Seeker, finally got his hands on the evasive Snitch.

Then, a Bludger flew at Oliver's head as he was celebrating without him realizing it.

Next thing he knew, Oliver was lying in a hospital bed in St. Mungo's. A sharp pain ran from the back of his head down his left arm as he tried to sit up, and quickly decided it would be in his best interests to lie back down. A figure, a tall, brown haired girl, walked into the room at just that moment. Oliver blinked stars from his eyes as he tried to identify the girl. It took a moment, but it came to him.

It was Kylie, Oliver's Muggle-born fiance. Upon noticing that Oliver was awake, she hurried over to his bed and sat down in a chair that was already there. She cocked her head and observed Oliver's expression carefully. Oliver blinked.

"What happened to me?" Kylie blinked right back at him.

"You don't remember?" Oliver shook his head. A look of concern crossed Kylie's face, then disappeared as quickly as it had come. "Let's try this first - do you know what your name is?"

"Oliver Wood."

"Good. And who am I?"

"My gorgeous and wonderful fiance."

"Good. But what's my name, Oliver?"

"Kylie. It's Kylie Spencer."

"Very good. Do you know where you are?" Oliver gave her a look that very obviously said he thought she was insane for asking him.

"Yes. In St. Mungo's. But the part I'm not really clear on is why. So if you would be so kind as to enlighten me...?" Kylie rolled her eyes. Yup, it was Oliver, all right.

"You really don't remember?" Oliver shook his head again, ignoring the white pain that shot through his skull every time he moved. "Well, they said you might not. You were playing Quidditch - you do remember what Quidditch is, don't you?"

"Duh." The look Oliver shot Kylie was one that could make even the smartest person alive feel like a complete and total idiot.

"OK, that's good, I guess. I'd have to be rather worried about you if you didn't remember what Quidditch was. Anyways, more to the point, your Seeker had just caught the Snitch, bringing Puddlemere to a 260, 250 victory over Wimbourne, and-" Oliver cut her off.

"Wait, we won?" Kylie nodded.

"Barely. Now, if you would be so kind as to let me continue...?"

"Go ahead."

"Thank you. While you were doing your little 'happy happy we won' dancey thingy that you tend to do upon winning a championship, one of Wimbourne's Beaters decided he wasn't too happy with the turnout and whacked a Bludger at your head. Gave you a nice concussion, too. And shattered your left arm, but that's rather besides the point, isn't it?" Before Oliver could respond, another person walked into the room. Kylie smiled. "Why hello, Dr. McAllestor."

"Hello, Kylie. And how is our little coma case today?"

"He's awake. Finally."

"Good, good. However, as good as that news is, I need to speak to Mr. Wood alone for a while. If you would be so kind...?"

"Of course." Kylie kissed Oliver on the cheek, stood up, and strode out of the room, closing the door behind her. Dr. McAllestor turned his attention to Oliver, who had a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"Now, Oliver - may I call you Oliver- while it is a very good sign that you pulled out of the coma as soon as you did, there is a bit more to this situation. You suffered severe head trauma from playing Quidditch, and as I understand it, this wasn't the first time something like this has happened to you, am I right?" Oliver nodded, fearful of what he would say next. "I feel the need to impress upon you the seriousness of this situation. If you take any more blows to the head, no matter how slight they may seem, you will receive a great deal of permanent brain damage."

"And, how much damage are we talking about? A wee bit or something more along the lines of vegetable for life?"

"More like the latter. It is with that information that I regretfully suggest that you cease playing Quidditch from now on. It's your final word, of course, but you know my feelings on the matter. But for now, you need your rest. I will take my leave now. Good day." Oliver lay in shocked silence as Dr. McAllestor exited the room.

What was he going to do? Quidditch was his life, the one thing that he always had to look forward to, the one place where he was always accepted for who he was and what he could do.

If he had been on his own, Oliver would have disregarded the doctor's words without so much as a second thought. But he wasn't alone. He had someone who cared about him, who would die if anything happened to him. Oliver couldn't take the risk of further damage, because if he did, Kylie wouldn't be able to live with herself. She would think it was all her fault, that she could have done something more to save him, that his death was a result of her lack of caring. But Oliver knew better. Kylie would never be able to stop him if he set his mind to it. She knew that just as well as he. But that wouldn't stop her from blaming herself until her dying day.

Oliver knew what he had to do. But that didn't mean he wanted to.

**This really didn't go where I wanted it to, and I think I might just scrap the entire thing and start over from scratch. Thoughts? Opinions? Let me know, please!**

**Thanks to interpol for pointing out a very stupid error on my part!**

**2/22**


End file.
